Returning to China
"Hey, what are you spacing out for?"
The chopsticks tapped against the glass, snapping Milo out of his reverie, and he realized that all the dishes on the table had been served. As soon as Milo landed, Jesse kept his promise and thoughtfully waited for him to rest for several days before throwing him a grand welcome-back dinner at Cloud Top Pavilion.
Jesse, sitting opposite Milo, scrutinized him from head to toe and said, "You've only been away on a business trip for a week, but you seem like you've lost your soul." Jesse shook his head with some disdain, "If it weren't for a legitimate company trip, you'd better never go to that kind of place in your life. You look like an idiot; you'd probably be selling someone out and still be counting the money for them."
Milo chuckled dryly and changed the subject: "I heard you recently seized the headquarters of the Thornton Group."
“Well, speaking of which, I actually have to thank you.” Jesse beamed. “Based on that seemingly insignificant tip you gave us, we actually managed to find out that there was something wrong with the auction proceeds that Steven transferred out of the country. He dug such a huge hole in the company's accounts, one hand after another, that it was impossible to hide. Our people arrested the accountant who was falsifying the books under him, and that guy couldn't withstand the pressure and confessed quickly. Then we uncovered the dirty stuff in his hilltop villa.”
"Sounds like things went smoothly?"
“When the timing is right, things go smoothly. But somehow, after Lianhua Machinery's collapse, another subsidiary of the Thornton Group had its medical equipment stuck in transit, and the person directly in charge named Peter disappeared. It's like a series of explosions. Now the hilltop villa is sealed off, Lianhua Machinery's stock price has plummeted, and the China Securities Regulatory Commission and the State Taxation Administration have already launched investigations.” As he spoke, Jesse picked up his knife, puzzled, “But it's strange, after such a big incident, Steven just disappeared. By the way, weren't you on the same ship? Did you see him on the way back?”
What was said in jest was taken seriously by the listener. Looking at the sizzling raw meat on the table, Milo's lips turned slightly pale: "No."
“It’s alright. Even if he runs abroad, the international police should have news by now. We’re not worried about not being able to catch him.” Jesse said while eating, glancing at Milo’s pale face out of the corner of his eye. Before he could ask, an urgent news item suddenly popped up on the LCD screen in the private room.
A quick glance at the table and Jesse froze in mid-air with the soup spoon in her hand: "Bobby Thornton is dead."
Milo glanced up without making a sound.
The building was crumbling, and the old man who had struggled for so long in his hospital bed suddenly passed away. Current reports state it was an unexpected sudden death, but many media outlets believe a conspiracy is involved. Rumors suggest that Bobby Thornton died with convulsions and dilated pupils, indicating he was likely frightened to death.
But what kind of thing could possibly scare a seasoned businessman who has experienced all walks of life to death?
Milo's gaze fell on a single frame of the screen.
Behind the eye-catching news headline was a blurry crowd, among whom was an ordinary old man in a T-shirt and a hat, who brushed past the medical staff who were rushing to the hospital.
Old Ruan is always decisive in his actions.
"That old man, he certainly died at the right time." Jesse was having a headache when suddenly the phone rang. He waved for Milo to continue eating and got up to answer the call outside.
Milo put down his chopsticks and silently watched Jesse's retreating figure.
Soon, Jesse rushed back, grabbed the food from the table, and said apologetically, "I'm so sorry, I promised to stay with you today. There's an emergency at the police station, so I have to go back first. Take your time eating."
Milo then stood up: "Let's go together."
Jesse didn't have time to persuade her further, and nodded, saying, "Okay, I'll take you back to the shop first."
Milo shook his head: "Let's go to Longjin Financial Health. I can take care of my onboarding procedures while I'm there."
Jesse was taken aback: "Is it really such a coincidence? Okay, let's go together."
After exiting the Cloud Top Pavilion, the vehicles gradually merged into the traffic flow on the main road.
Milo spoke first: "What happened at the Dale Group?"
Jesse hesitated for a moment and said, "I shouldn't be telling you this, you just came back from Tengbang, I'm afraid I'll scare you."
"I've already told you, I'm not as timid as you think."
Do you know Mengsha?
"How could he not know about such a notorious drug lord?"
"Mongsa seized a mountain in Tengbang and wanted to emulate the high degree of autonomy in Gangu, but Penglasong naturally didn't want to see that happen. You know Penglasong, right? Although he's just a businessman, he monopolizes 60% of Tengbang's clean water and electricity and the transportation of goods, so he's also known as the 'Shadow Governor.' Behind him is General Zowin of Tengbang, the most promising candidate to become the next president of Tengbang. These groups have been at odds for a long time, but just two days ago, Mengsa was killed, shot in the head."
"What does their country's internal strife have to do with us?"
Jesse jerked the steering wheel and slammed on the gas: "That's the trouble. The one who killed Mengsha is very likely Heimai. The immigration bureau has confirmed that Heimai has entered the country again, and this time he was extremely fast. His last stop was a cargo ship belonging to one of Longjin Financial Jian's companies. We have reason to suspect that he impersonated a Longjin Financial Jian labor dispatch worker to sneak in."
Milo's eyelids twitched: "Why did he kill Meng Sha?"
"I heard that a while ago, Pengla Song discussed road construction with Gangu, on the condition that Gangu clear out the rebels. The project was about to be completed, but Meng Sha occupied a mountain that was connected to Gangu, and he was unhappy about it, so the construction period was delayed. Originally, it could have been delayed slowly, but unexpectedly, Meng Sha was shot and killed the next day. He died quietly, and his body was not discovered until the next day."
Jesse frowned and continued, "He killed someone without hesitation, isn't he afraid of retaliation? He's crazy, like delaying the project would kill him. The murder case was just broadcast over there, and he's already fled here. He's in a real hurry; anyone who didn't know better would think he was rushing to see someone."
The last sentence was meant as a joke, but as he spoke, Jesse suddenly frowned and hesitated before asking, "Milo, did you run into Rye in Tengbang? Is he still pursuing you?"
Milo, sitting in the passenger seat, looked up and said calmly, "I follow the company, how could I possibly run into the kind of person you're talking about? Maybe he's found a new replacement, and I'm no longer of any use to him."
"That's good." Jesse breathed a sigh of relief. "Different countries have different circumstances. In Tengbang, he has a special status and can legally kill drug dealers in self-defense. But even if he accidentally killed someone he deserved to die this time, it doesn't mean that his behavior was excessive and that he's not a normal person. You understand what I mean?"
Milo nodded: "I understand."
When they arrived at Longjin Financial Health, a large number of police cars had already gathered below the company. One of them had SNOB printed on it. As soon as Jesse saw those cars, he gave them a disgusted look.
As Jesse and Milo walked together, the deeper they went into the company, the more they could hear the suppressed murmurs.
At the bottom of the spiral staircase, Miles was followed by three or five men in suits, while there were two groups of people in front of him.
The most conspicuous person was the Chief Superintendent of the Wudong Port Police Station. The two chatted and laughed, and finally shook hands. Throughout the entire event, Miles appeared relaxed, not at all like someone from a company surrounded by police cars.
Milo's gaze fell on another group of people, the legendary Skynet Operations Department.
The man at the head of the group was tall and thin, with a refined appearance and wearing black-rimmed glasses. Among the group of police officers, he was the only one in plainclothes, but Milo could tell that he was the highest-ranking officer among all the Skynet Operations personnel present.
Miles' voice rang out: "It's a misunderstanding. I'll trouble you two sheriffs to come over."
The Superintendent of Police waved his hand politely.
The young man with glasses spoke slowly, his voice gentle: "It's not exactly trouble. Even if no one illegally enters the country on your company's cargo ship, such a major personnel change will still affect the stock price, won't it? There should be more than just Miles Thornton as the heir to the Thornton Group, right? Who's the other one? Isn't he willing to make a statement?"
As the man's voice fell, a series of footsteps sounded.
Milo looked up at the sound and saw a group of people walking down the spiral staircase, with Blaze leading the way.
Beneath his tall and upright figure was a well-tailored matte black suit, with a dark patterned lapel and metal cufflinks reflecting a cold light. The tattoo on his neck was strong and sharp, making him seem out of place in this formal suit.
As Blaise walked down the stairs, people on both sides automatically made way for him, and he was used to this. As the tallest person in the room, his appearance almost seemed to take up everyone else's breathing space.
Milo subtly shifted his gaze away.
A middle-aged man in a suit behind Blaise spoke up: "Sheriff, you're joking. Our Mr. Blaise joined the company a year ago, he just doesn't show up often. How could he be associated with those criminals?"
Jesse frowned sharply.
He had seen Rye before. That night at the abandoned courier station, despite the dim lighting, Milo had pointed out Rye's face to him on the spot—he was deaf and mute, and the impression was too deep. How could he have suddenly become Tate Dahl's illegitimate son? At this moment, the hearing aid matched that face perfectly, and Jesse almost immediately wanted to step forward and handcuff him.
Miles chimed in, “Indeed, it’s just a family matter and won’t affect business.”
The young man pondered for a moment and said, "Family matters? I'm just a little curious. How should a company be divided between two heirs? Perhaps tomorrow's headlines will be dominated by the Dale Group again."
After speaking, the young man turned around, and as he passed by, his gaze lingered on Jesse and Milo for a second.
Jesse's eyes were piercing, and even Milo could sense his displeasure. The middle-aged police inspector subtly stopped Jesse from peeking out and said to Miles, "That's settled then. You guys go ahead with your business, and we'll leave as we see fit."
"Take care." Miles stood still and smiled in greeting.
Jesse was indignant, but he was a very disciplined person, with police regulations ingrained in his bones. Seeing that his superior was hinting that he shouldn't cause trouble, he had no choice but to follow him out the door.
Blaise and his entourage walked straight past Milo.
Milo stepped forward, walked to Miles' side, and asked hesitantly, "What happened? Wasn't he supposed to stay in Gan Valley? Why is he here?"
Miles didn't answer, but simply held out his hand. Immediately, someone handed him an employee badge, which he personally put on Milo, saying, "From today onwards, you are a full-time employee of the Dale Group. Your office is in the same room as mine; you know where it is."
Milo clutched his employee badge, and out of the corner of his eye, he could sense a clear division between the two factions within the company.
Once inside the elevator, the space was enclosed. Milo looked up and saw Miles' tense face.
Clearly, the ease he appeared to be in public was a facade; Sigon's broken promise and Blaise's return had caused Miles unprecedented distress.
Milo began, "Blaze, he—"
“He’s changed.” Miles interrupted coldly the moment the elevator doors opened. “Unfortunately, some things were never meant to be his.”
Following him all the way to the office, Milo saw his workstation. Although it was called the same office, it was actually a huge office with a separate work area embedded in it. To actually enter Miles's door, you had to enter a password.
Milo silently followed him inside, watching Miles search through the mountain of file cabinets using sticky notes, pull out a document, and hand it to Milo: "Now, the first thing we need to do is take over Lotus Machinery."
Milo reached out and took it, asking, "Are you planning to just take it over?"
Miles didn't deny it: "Bobby Thornton is dead, and not many people know about Steven's escape yet. We need to strike first before his relative catches up."
Milo suddenly remembered Steven's self-deprecating words by the river. Miles had been eyeing him like a predator from the beginning. He seemed like a partner, but he would pounce on him like a hungry tiger the moment he took a breather. Not wanting to be swallowed up or devoured, he could only keep finding ways to make money.
Milo glanced through the documents and suddenly realized that even before Bobby Thornton's funeral, Miles had already begun his takeover plan, suggesting that he had been planning to acquire the Thornton Group for a long time.
“Milo, I’ve given you the position you wanted, and there will be more in the future.” Miles suddenly slammed his hand on the file. “Now, tell me, can I trust you?”
Milo looked up and said without hesitation, "Of course."
Miles reached out and stroked Milo's cheek, saying gently, "Tell me, did you know he suddenly came back?"
Milo replied, "If it were for my sake, he wouldn't have told me to get out. I don't think I'm that valuable."
“Alright.” Miles’s expression softened. “I just thought that you might feel uncomfortable being in the same company.”
Milo stared intently at Miles and said, "Then let's take down Lianhua Machinery before them. In this world, it's always the losers who are unhappy."
Miles' lips curled up slightly, as if he was a little surprised by the sudden burst of energy in Milo.
Miles reached out and pulled Milo close, placing his hands on Milo's shoulders and gently pressing him into his seat. The slight pressure from his palms as he massaged Milo's shoulders suddenly carried a strange undertone.
Seeing Milo's knees slightly bent together, Miles pinched Milo's earlobe and whispered, "I was just thinking about why I installed these damn surveillance cameras in the office."
Milo lowered his head and didn't say anything.
Miles spun his chair around, braced his arms on the desk, and easily brought Milo within his sight.
"Why are your ears red?" Miles slowly leaned closer. "Milo, what are you thinking about?"
Milo looked up and answered meekly, "I'm thinking, I'm so glad, because I can finally be by your side."
Miles's gaze faltered slightly.
Milo smiled: "I'll do my best."
Miles smiled slightly and said, "I know."
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